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First Born
A village idiot with a taste for murder. A juror fresh out of law school. An ignored trial error. When neophyte attorney G.W. Chism receives a jury duty summons too late to excuse himself from jury selection, he lands the role of foreman on a disturbing murder trial. Despite the knowledge of a trial error, the jury finds No Mercy Percy guilty and sentences him to death. Fifteen years later, Percy Kilbourne is no longer considered a village idiot. In prison, Kilbourne's genius intellect is uncovered when a guard explains a joke to him and he transforms into a cultivated and reformed convict. When a tape is discovered that could overturn his death sentence, Kilbourne requests attorney G.W. Chism to represent him. Haunted by the mistake in the original Kilbourne trial, G.W. Chism dedicates his career to serving the letter of the law, even when it is blind to true justice. When a judge orders him to represent Kilbourne, G.W. follows the letter of the law, and Kilbourne walks free, setting into motion a demonic killer's revenge.
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First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 25, 2013
4.5 Stars
One man convicted of a heinous crime, another a lover of the letter of the law, these two men will meet in a courtroom and their lives will be entwined, for better or worse, from there forward.
Percy Kilbourne, called “No Mercy Percy” by most because of his love of a good barroom brawl, is a hulking man with copper hair and startling violet eyes. He’s not too bright and on trial for the murder, rape, and beheading of his ten year old niece.
George Washington Chism, called G.W. by friends and “Dubya” by those close to him, loves the law and believes in due process. Just graduated from Harvard and on his way for his first day at work in the firm founded by his late father and his best friend Bill Freeman, G.W. finds a jury summons in a stack of mail. Not only does he get picked for the jury, he is elected Foreman by the rest of the jurors.
After much deliberation, the jurors convict Percy to prison. G.W. and everyone else on the jury know that Percy is guilty; they also know that by convicting him they are not following the letter of the law.
Prison is good for Percy, after a guard tells him a joke and then explains it to him; Percy realizes he is more intelligent than suspected. With nothing but time on his hands, Percy educates himself, works on his body and demeanor and has one goal in mind. To get out of prison and exact his revenge on those who put him there. When a glitch gets Percy a chance at a re-trial he asks for none other than G.W. as his lawyer. Knowing he has no other choice, G.W. takes the case and following the letter of the law, sets a monster free. Now the dance begins, who leads and who follows will be determined.
First let me say, WOW has author Bob Stewart given us one heck of a scary, thrilling, nail biting story. This is no “who done it”, we know from the first sentence of the book who done it and as the book progresses and more horrible acts occur, not only do we know who done it, we watch him do it. Knowing who done it and catching him is a different matter and that is where Mr. Stewart works his magic. I read this book with one eye closed and other constantly looking behind me, my heart beating so fast at times it’s amazing I didn’t pass out.
The characters jump off the page and are so well developed we know their thoughts, even though knowing some of their thoughts might give one nightmares. G.W. is a typical Texan, he loves his state and he loves the law. He is unbending when it comes to the law and yet as a defense attorney he manages to use the law to his advantage very successfully.
Percy is one scary dude, his eyes can look right through you and once you’ve looked into them, you don’t forget. We also meet one sexy little Cajun DEA agent, April Sinclair, who will set things in motion and who will become very important to the story very quickly. No spoilers here but both G.W. and Percy are happy to have her in their lives.
To say I loved this book is putting it mildly but I do have one slight little niggle. G.W. and April’s inability to figure out who done it, even after clues were practically thrown at then seemed a little out of character for both of them. It’s a little thing, but since we got to know them so well, it just played in the back of my mind and did impact my enjoyment while reading. Content warning here, there is some violence in this book, and it can get pretty graphic. Anyone who likes shivers up their spine and who likes to be kept on the edge of their seats will love this book, well done Mr. Stewart.
Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team
One man convicted of a heinous crime, another a lover of the letter of the law, these two men will meet in a courtroom and their lives will be entwined, for better or worse, from there forward.
Percy Kilbourne, called “No Mercy Percy” by most because of his love of a good barroom brawl, is a hulking man with copper hair and startling violet eyes. He’s not too bright and on trial for the murder, rape, and beheading of his ten year old niece.
George Washington Chism, called G.W. by friends and “Dubya” by those close to him, loves the law and believes in due process. Just graduated from Harvard and on his way for his first day at work in the firm founded by his late father and his best friend Bill Freeman, G.W. finds a jury summons in a stack of mail. Not only does he get picked for the jury, he is elected Foreman by the rest of the jurors.
After much deliberation, the jurors convict Percy to prison. G.W. and everyone else on the jury know that Percy is guilty; they also know that by convicting him they are not following the letter of the law.
Prison is good for Percy, after a guard tells him a joke and then explains it to him; Percy realizes he is more intelligent than suspected. With nothing but time on his hands, Percy educates himself, works on his body and demeanor and has one goal in mind. To get out of prison and exact his revenge on those who put him there. When a glitch gets Percy a chance at a re-trial he asks for none other than G.W. as his lawyer. Knowing he has no other choice, G.W. takes the case and following the letter of the law, sets a monster free. Now the dance begins, who leads and who follows will be determined.
First let me say, WOW has author Bob Stewart given us one heck of a scary, thrilling, nail biting story. This is no “who done it”, we know from the first sentence of the book who done it and as the book progresses and more horrible acts occur, not only do we know who done it, we watch him do it. Knowing who done it and catching him is a different matter and that is where Mr. Stewart works his magic. I read this book with one eye closed and other constantly looking behind me, my heart beating so fast at times it’s amazing I didn’t pass out.
The characters jump off the page and are so well developed we know their thoughts, even though knowing some of their thoughts might give one nightmares. G.W. is a typical Texan, he loves his state and he loves the law. He is unbending when it comes to the law and yet as a defense attorney he manages to use the law to his advantage very successfully.
Percy is one scary dude, his eyes can look right through you and once you’ve looked into them, you don’t forget. We also meet one sexy little Cajun DEA agent, April Sinclair, who will set things in motion and who will become very important to the story very quickly. No spoilers here but both G.W. and Percy are happy to have her in their lives.
To say I loved this book is putting it mildly but I do have one slight little niggle. G.W. and April’s inability to figure out who done it, even after clues were practically thrown at then seemed a little out of character for both of them. It’s a little thing, but since we got to know them so well, it just played in the back of my mind and did impact my enjoyment while reading. Content warning here, there is some violence in this book, and it can get pretty graphic. Anyone who likes shivers up their spine and who likes to be kept on the edge of their seats will love this book, well done Mr. Stewart.
Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team
February 8, 2013
Bob Stewart made a national name for himself with his bestselling true crime books such as NO REMORSE. He’s doing the same thing these days with his thrillers.
Stewart delivers one of the most chilling murderers in contemporary fiction with the introduction in FIRST BORN of Percy Kilbourne, known to most as “No Mercy Percy” Kilbourne, who misspells his own last name as “Kill Born” to reflect what he sees and owns as his evil destiny. What Stewart has done here is nothing short of remarkable. He has turned the plot of Pygmalion upside down and created a character who began as the white-trash rapist in Deliverance and is transformed during his stint in prison into a smooth, cultured, educated, sophisticated guy who can charm preachers and old ladies out of their socks, while creating a personal apocalypse for those he has vowed vengeance against. Sent to prison by a jury bent on ridding society of a murderer, even when presented evidence that legally he should be set free, No Mercy Percy gets set free by the same lawyer who served as jury foreman for his conviction… and sets out to destroy the lives of all who sat in judgment on him.
Over and over again, while reading this novel, I kept thinking of Robert DeNiro’s portrayal of Max Cady in the remake of Cape Fear. I’ve always thought of that performance as the best depiction of the single scariest villain in any movie or book—much more frightening even than Hannibal Lector. Well, Stewart’s No Mercy Percy is the guy who could take down Max Cady. He’d have him for breakfast. To steal a line from one of my own stories that seems apt: Wherever this guy was became the bad part of town.
This is one scary guy. You’ve got to read this book. And then, send letters to DeNiro’s agent. This is a role that was made for him.
Stewart delivers one of the most chilling murderers in contemporary fiction with the introduction in FIRST BORN of Percy Kilbourne, known to most as “No Mercy Percy” Kilbourne, who misspells his own last name as “Kill Born” to reflect what he sees and owns as his evil destiny. What Stewart has done here is nothing short of remarkable. He has turned the plot of Pygmalion upside down and created a character who began as the white-trash rapist in Deliverance and is transformed during his stint in prison into a smooth, cultured, educated, sophisticated guy who can charm preachers and old ladies out of their socks, while creating a personal apocalypse for those he has vowed vengeance against. Sent to prison by a jury bent on ridding society of a murderer, even when presented evidence that legally he should be set free, No Mercy Percy gets set free by the same lawyer who served as jury foreman for his conviction… and sets out to destroy the lives of all who sat in judgment on him.
Over and over again, while reading this novel, I kept thinking of Robert DeNiro’s portrayal of Max Cady in the remake of Cape Fear. I’ve always thought of that performance as the best depiction of the single scariest villain in any movie or book—much more frightening even than Hannibal Lector. Well, Stewart’s No Mercy Percy is the guy who could take down Max Cady. He’d have him for breakfast. To steal a line from one of my own stories that seems apt: Wherever this guy was became the bad part of town.
This is one scary guy. You’ve got to read this book. And then, send letters to DeNiro’s agent. This is a role that was made for him.
March 20, 2013
Firstborn by Bob Stewart has a villain that's as creepy bad as you can make him. No Mercy Percy lives up to his name throughout the story as he pursues those who he perceives have done him wrong or the offspring of those who have done him wrong. I'm not sure I'm going to invite Bob to any sleepovers on the off-chance that he has more of Percy to excise from his subconscious, where all scary stories evolve, but I enjoyed the story, and it was nice to read one that appeared to have been edited with loving care.
This is a suspense thriller not for the faint of heart. Which means if you like your villains on the order of Hannibel Lecter, Max Cady, or the Zodiac Killer, then this book is for you--a slam-dunk "5". The lawyer, well, for such a well-renowned, inquisitive defense attorney, he was a bit slow on the uptake. Bob did a wonderful job of planting clues that lead up to helping discover what was going on, but the 'bright' lawyer seemed a bit on the dull side to me. I kept shouting, "Connect the dots. Connect the dots." The reason for No Mercy Percy's transition from country bumpkin to super villain was remarkably believable, but his ability to disguise himself at times proved a bit tough to swallow.
I loved the peppering of the smaller details both in Texas and New Orleans. Made you feel right at home. While I love the fight in the expectant parents, balanced with the sense of betrayal, for none thriller lovers this is a fence-sitter, but it kept me up past my bedtime two nights in a row, so I'm going to nudge it ever so gently into the "5" rating side of the fence. Read in a well lit room.
This is a suspense thriller not for the faint of heart. Which means if you like your villains on the order of Hannibel Lecter, Max Cady, or the Zodiac Killer, then this book is for you--a slam-dunk "5". The lawyer, well, for such a well-renowned, inquisitive defense attorney, he was a bit slow on the uptake. Bob did a wonderful job of planting clues that lead up to helping discover what was going on, but the 'bright' lawyer seemed a bit on the dull side to me. I kept shouting, "Connect the dots. Connect the dots." The reason for No Mercy Percy's transition from country bumpkin to super villain was remarkably believable, but his ability to disguise himself at times proved a bit tough to swallow.
I loved the peppering of the smaller details both in Texas and New Orleans. Made you feel right at home. While I love the fight in the expectant parents, balanced with the sense of betrayal, for none thriller lovers this is a fence-sitter, but it kept me up past my bedtime two nights in a row, so I'm going to nudge it ever so gently into the "5" rating side of the fence. Read in a well lit room.
March 1, 2013
If you’re in the market for a thriller of biblical proportions, make Firstborn your first choice. A fledgling lawyer gets on a jury and becomes instrumental in convicting a man of a heinous murder. The accused is a redneck, retarded mess. Fifteen years later, evidence comes to light that frees him. Our fledgling lawyer, now an experienced and celebrated defense attorney, is the legal tool that opens the jail door. The idiot who went to prison has transformed himself into a sleek intellectual. Once someone diagnosed his dyslexia, he learned how to compensate and developed himself into a physical and mental model of the model prisoner. However–you guessed it–his evil essence, the ugly drive to hurt and kill, has remained constant. He wants his revenge, and his methods are as ingenious as they are brutal and bloody. Firstborn is not a whodunit. You know all the time whodunit and who’s doing it, and who’s going to do it. It’s No Mercy Percy. The mystery is who and how to stop him before all the good guys get slaughtered.
Those are the bare bones of the matter. However, Stewart has given us another dimension. The clue to that dimension–a biblical and religious one–lies in the title itself. If you can’t guess it now, you will know it intimately by the time you finish this story of love and murder and salvation in San Antonio. It’s well worth the journey.
Those are the bare bones of the matter. However, Stewart has given us another dimension. The clue to that dimension–a biblical and religious one–lies in the title itself. If you can’t guess it now, you will know it intimately by the time you finish this story of love and murder and salvation in San Antonio. It’s well worth the journey.
March 9, 2013
Bob Stewart gets into the head of a serial killer and I can't get his vivid imagery out of mine. The stuff of my and every lawyer's worst nightmares! if you like good vs very very evil novels you'll love this one. Could have used just a bit more polish.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews